8.31.2009

Great Feedback

Thank you to everyone who went to the trouble of checking out my shop and leaving comments! I got some great feedback from you guys. The randomly drawn winner is:

scrappinmomto2girls

I will need your address so I can send you your RAK. I will post pictures tomorrow of what I've put together for you.

8.29.2009

Guest Contributor at The NEXT STEP!!!!



So I am going to be featured at my FAAAAVORITE technique challenge blog.. I will be sharing a tutorial I made for them first thing this coming Monday. Make sure to check it out HERE.

I have been so darned excited about this for the last two months or so. I am thrilled to finally be this close! It`ll be my first time being featured on a blog or website! WOOHOO!

Be sure to check out my etsy shop and then comment back here for a chance to win a RAK of a bunch of my cuts, either digitally or in paper. I will be randomly drawing a winner on Monday and you have up until Sunday at midnight to leave a comment. Just leave me some feedback about what you like or don`t like about my shop so far. Easy. Plus there are only 3 comments so far so the odds are pretty good.

Hope everyone is having a great weekend...back to school Monday. I, for one, am looking forward to that QUITE a bit!!!! Might have to have a bit of a party on Monday afternoon.

I seriously need to get back on here and share some of the great pictures I have taken recently. I have been spending TOO much time with this Etsy fun!!! I have all sorts of ideas for it.

Don`t foget...CHECK OUT MY SHOP...DO IT!

Here's one picture from the cottage, my dad with Ella...SO CUTE!

8.26.2009

I love this new layout!!!


So this is my new LO that I absolutely love!!! All of the borders on it were cut with my cricut and the cut files are available in my Etsy Shop. I made the big beige flower (I posted how to make this a few posts back) Thanks for visiting and have a great day!!!






8.25.2009

New Etsy Shop, RAK to win, SVGs and die-cuts


So I decided to have a try at an Etsy Shop, It's called DigiCuts Designs and I will be selling digital cut files as well as paper die cuts. It will take a bit of time for me to fill up my shop, but I am started on it now. Please come check it out and let me know what you think about the look of it, I have no idea what I'm doing so any feedback would be super appreciated. On Sunday, I will randomly select someone who leaves me a comment in this post and I will send you a RAK (some of my cuts) just for leaving me some feedback!!!

Come see my shop

Always learning

Life can be so difficult sometimes. Recently I have been going through a bit of emotional turmoil. I went to the cottage and my husband stayed home because he had to work. It's crazy how fast things can fall apart when you are away from your "person"; when you don't just have them there. It is so easy in life to take the important things for granted. That's why it's good to switch things up every once in a while. As I was at the cottage, I felt crazy to be honest. Going through hard times alone and in the middle of the woods, not a good move for me; not going to lie. Anyway, as I came undone, I realized how much my husband is my rock. I know that sounds cliché but, it's true. He may not always have the right thing to say and he is not always the most sensitive(far from it), but he makes me feel loved and that is something. Anyway, the whole ordeal definitely was a positive one:

  1. I learned that I can drive all the way to my cottage (3 hours away) by myself
  2. I gained a new understanding and appreciation for my husband's role in my life
  3. I showed myself that I could stay there overnight by myself without being too scared
  4. I gained a new insight about people who may be less fortunate then me with how much love I have in my life (it's been a long time since I felt lonely that way).

As for D, I always consider myself to be a very compassionate person and objective person, but sometimes you need first hand experience to really think about what another's experience might actually be like. What I mean by this is that we should never judge other people. We really never can know what it means to be that other person. This is the same for other people's relationships. You just can never know all of the things that are at play in another person's life that makes them who they are. I relish every opportunity to re-realize this because it helps make me a better person I think. I mean we all judge, but I really don't mean to. So, any time I get new insight I am always moved by it. Try today to treat someone more tenderly than you would normally, we are all going through the same stuff, just different degrees of it. When we look at other people, we need to learn to see them as a whole person. Once you start doing this, you also start learning to give yourself the same consideration. Trust me, when you shed that judgement of others, it becomes much easier to be less judgmental of yourself. It is completely linked, completely true.

Anyway, as soon as I came home, I called my husband and told him all of this and how much I appreciated him and how sad and lonely I was there, in the middle of an emotional rollercoaster ride without him. I think he really appreciated my honesty. He came home and took care of me and surprise, surprise I was much better equipped to deal with said emotional turmoil. I feel so much better. Anyway, I just wanted to share this lesson, nothing too new here but I think we can all be reminded some times.

Have a wonderful day and try to remember to see the whole person, you just never know what they have been through.

8.24.2009

Made a wicked flower





I just finished making this really nice flower that was so easy and adds a lot of dimension to any of your paper crafting projects.



All I did was cut a bunch of different sized flowers with my cricut. Then I used glue and sort of crumpled and bent each flower and layered them all to gether. I used my paper piercer and poked a whole through the finished flower and put through the flower stamens through the center.



If you would like, you can download this SCAL Project HERE

8.23.2009

New Sketch to Share


Just wanted to share a sketch that I just made tonight. I am really enjoying doing them and I have even seen a couple of my sketches used now and I have to say...it's pretty exciting to see them!!! Anyway, I'm just dropping this off and I will post some pictures of the cottage and stuff a little later. Have a good night!

8.22.2009

I'm so excited and I just can't hide it

So big news for me:

I was asked to join the design team at ScrapMuse. ScrapMuse is a mid-month scrapbooking club featuring the latest patterned papers, as well as a wide variety of specialty papers, embellishments, ribbons and supplies to inspire you to create beautiful layouts. It is also one of the longest running scrapbooking kit clubs in the business. You should definitely check them out.

I will start designing with the September kit and cannot wait!

Here is a picture of the August kit and one of the add-on kit:



































Anyway, I've been busting all month to share this news and now I am finally able to! Yipee!!!!!

8.16.2009

No-Kids, No Husband Weekend

So I had a girls weekend this weekend. David and the kids went up to a cottage that his parents rented and I had my girlfriends over for a hang out and sleep over on Friday night. We had a big breakfast and lounged around on Saturday day, then went out for Thai food for dinner. Later we were supposed to go out but I was too tired from the night before and so I actually came home at a reasonable hour.

Here's us checking out our friend's licence for comical reasons I won't go into. I wasn't able to get any more pictures by the time I took my camera out in the morning. Everyone ducked and hid so that I wouldn't get them and put them on my blog in their pajamas. DARN.


Today I cleaned and did some laundry and got some scrapbooking done.




On Wednesday we went to the beach with my sister in law and my two nieces Lauren and Mallory. The weather was perfect and the kids had SO much fun in the water.



Ella and Lauren running through the water:


Ella's face is prime:


Mallory wanted to eat that shoe...and everything else:

Tomorrow morning we are headed up to the cottage for a week or so and I will have no computer or phone. I am totally looking forward to it. It will be the first time we are making it up to the cottage this summer. We have been so busy working around the house in all of our spare time, there just has been no time. Anyway, if anyone sends me any emails I won't get them until at least Friday or Saturday and possibly later.

8.14.2009

She just did this

So Ella was being really quiet a few minutes ago. I knew she was in the bathroom, but I was doing other things so I wasn't fully paying attention to how long she was actually in there. Anyway, this horrifying monster is what emerged:

Like seriously, you really had to put thick Halloween makeup all over your face. Really? And just for the record it is still on her face...right this minute. I might just leave it there for a while. See her face in the first one? She's trying to guage my reaction. She got really confused because I just looked at her, said nothing and grabbed my camera. She was NOT sure how to take this. What a freak.

8.09.2009

Eleanor Roosevelt was and is the shiz

David and I stumbled upon our old baby names book this morning and he looked up Eleanor. Under famous names, was Eleanor Roosevelt, which for some weird reason hadn't even occurred to me that she and Ella(Eleanor, our daughter)share the same name. I would love to be able to claim that she was the reason that we named her that, but it was actually really random and let's just say that Ella was not named for two days, that's all I'm going to say about that, hehe. Anyway, I remembered that as a child I had a really fond sentiment towards the woman after seeing her character in "Annie" and learning bits about her at school. I googled her, and I came across the following 17 quotes which astounded me on THIS quotations website.

Eleanor Roosevelt (1884 - 1962) [check the time, first off]


A woman is like a tea bag- you never know how strong she is until she gets in hot water.

Beautiful young people are accidents of nature, but beautiful old people are works of art.

Do what you feel in your heart to be right - for you'll be criticized anyway. You'll be damned if you do, and damned if you don't.

Friendship with oneself is all-important, because without it one cannot be friends with anyone else in the world.
[this is SO true]

Great minds discuss ideas; Average minds discuss events; Small minds discuss people.[wow...truth]

I could not at any age be content to take my place in a corner by the fireside and simply look on.
[beautiful]

I think that somehow, we learn who we really are and then live with that decision.

If someone betrays you once, it's their fault; if they betray you twice, it's your fault.
[so completely true with just about everything]

It is not fair to ask of others what you are unwilling to do yourself.
[amen.]

Justice cannot be for one side alone, but must be for both.

Learn from the mistakes of others. You can't live long enough to make them all yourself.

Life was meant to be lived, and curiosity must be kept alive. One must never, for whatever reason, turn his back on life.
[i completely agree]

One thing life has taught me: if you are interested, you never have to look for new interests. They come to you. When you are genuinely interested in one thing, it will always lead to something else.
[boy, i have learned this to be true]

The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience.

You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, 'I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.' You must do the thing you think you cannot do.
[A-FREAKIN-MAZING]

No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.
[fo sho]

People grow through experience if they meet life honestly and courageously. This is how character is built.
[the key is in the honestly and courageously]


 

Not only are her words incredibly true and extremely relevant still today, but they are also words that aren't spoken or truly understood by everyone. These are the words of a truly evolved woman/human. She was born almost 100 years before me. This is not the wisdom that comes simply from being a first lady, or from being privledged, this is the wisdom of a woman who was truly ahead of her time and probably much ahead of most, still today, in terms of self-actualization.

Sly Fox Card FREEBIE, Cricut Project

I had to make a card today for a party that my son was going to, so I decided to share it! Spent a good hour on it and then Owen wouldn't even stay for the party. Oh well.


You can download this free kit HERE. You will need the SCAL software to use these files with your cricut. Below is the completed project. Putting it together took seconds, just getting it all designed took some time. If you use my cuts, I would love to hear from you, Used or not, I would love any feedback.



I used Core'dinations cs for this lo, stitched some buttons and attached as eyes. I used a white sakura gelly roller to outline the brown cs for extra detail. For the nose, I used some crystal laquer, but had a bit of a mishap and it got all gummed up, so I just went with it and it has a slightly foggy appearance, which only looks weird if you know it's supposed to be crystal laquer. I cut the word "fox" with the cricut and drew the rest with a black Zig marker.

8.07.2009

looooove family get-togethers

On Wednesday some of my cousins and my sister cam to our house to spend the day with us. We went the beach, had a bbq at the beach and then cam home for some fresh drama. After that was settled we ordered some pizza for supper and then spent the rest of the evening filming ourselves, which I will share the hilarious results of soon.

Here's Jeff at the beach:


Us


Meaghan(my sister and Alanah, my cousin)


Joshua, my cousin....lots...too much um, hair.


The following two pictures were taken by my cousin Joshua and I edited them up. My sister looks flat out gorgeous!



Ella, back at home:


My kids are animals...



I crunched Ella's head, i lnow it's not nice, but sometimes it's just one of those days.

Trip to Walmart last weekend...David wanted to kill me for taking pictures at Walmart:


A few pictures of the kids playing outside the other night.




Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

More Sketches



I am having a lot of fun doing sketches, it's not for any other reason other than me being a weirdo who gets into something for a while and then goes buckwild on it for a while until I get bored. So for now, I'm totally into doing sketches! I would love to see your work if anyone ends up using any of my sketches. In fact, I might have some sort of contest even, maybe with a prize from my stash. I might get this in the works. Also, I have some more exciting news to share at some point...but not yet suckers! BA HAHA HA (crazy tyranical laughing) All I will say now is that my habit might be getting quite a bit cheaper soon!!!!

8.04.2009

Scrapbooking Sketches



This is my first set of sketches that I've ever done. It was fun to do and I think I will keep doing them. I have often done them for myself but have never shared them before. SO use them if you like them. I will be back soon to post some recent pictures and stuff and to give updates, not that there is anything really exciting to share although I am working on a very exciting project but I can't share the details until later this month.